According to state of the art, it is known to incorporate an image detector device, as a CCD camera, in an outside rear-view mirror assembly of a vehicle to provide a rear image reflected by the reflector and representative digitalized data of an image captured by the image detector device, said data being susceptible to be used later on by electronic means, in order to provide, for example, warning signals to the driver.
A known method to execute this function consists in designing a casing provided with specific configuration for the installation of a reflector, reserving a part of the space available within the casing for other specific configurations for the installation of the image detector device. A disadvantage of this system, however, is that the mentioned casing comprising specific configurations, may only be used for installing a reflector together with an image detector device. When it is not desired to fit a vehicle with an image detector device, for example for the basic versions of a model, it is necessary to manufacture a casing with specific configurations for the installation of one single deflector occupying all the space available within the casing. Therefore, this makes it necessary to provide two different moulds for the manufacture of one or the other of the casings, with a corresponding rising in costs.
It is also known to design a casing provided with specific configurations for the installation of a reflector and an image detector device, where the reflector is of a transparent type at the non-reflecting side and is located covering the image detector device, so that the image detector device acquires information through the reflector. Even though with this construction it would be possible to use the same casing for the installation of a conventional reflector omitting the image detector device, the acquisition of information with the detector through the transparent reflector may present problems, due to non-desired reflects depending on the light conditions.
The object of the present invention is to solve the previous mentioned drawbacks providing an outside rear-view mirror assembly of vehicle adapted for the optional incorporation of an image detector device, where a single casing is usable for the installation of a reflector substantially occupying the space available within the casing, or a reflector occupying a part of the available space together with an image detector device, associated with an adapter occupying the remaining space within the casing.